Appliance for use by bowlers



Feb. 9, 1960 /N. MICHAELS El AL 2,924,457

APPLIANCE FOR USE BY BOWLERS- Filed Sept. 16, 1957 INVENTORS NORMAN MICHAELS MERLE M. MEEK ATTORNEYS 2,924,457 APPLIANCE FOR USE BY BOWLERS et-men Michaels and MerleM. Meek, Milwaukee, Wis. 1 Application September 16, 1957, Serial No. 684,162

2 Claims. 01. 213-54 This invention appertains to game appliances and more particularly to a novel device for use by persons in the game of bowling.

Much difficulty has been experienced by bowlers in placing their balls upon the floor or bench after the removal thereof from the carrying bag. The ball tends to roll and many serious accidents have occurred from this. Likewise, many bowlers desire to moisten their hands or fingers just prior to the rolling of the ball down the alley.

It is, therefore, one of the primary objects of our invention to provide a light, compact and portable device which can be placed upon the floor or other object for receiving a bowling ball, so that the ball will be firmly supported and held against accidental rolling movement.

Another salient object of our invention is to provide a base or tee having a flange or rim in which the ball is detachably seated, the base or tee being of such a construction that the ball can be quickly placed in, or removed from the base or tee.

A further important object of the invention is the provision of a hollow baseor tee for temporarily supporting a bowling ball against rolling, the hollow base or tee being filled with a sponge accessible through the top of the base so that the bowler can moisten or wipe his fingers on the sponge, when the same is saturated with water.

A still further object of the invention is the provision of means whereby the base can be detachably associated with a part of the clothing of a bowler when the base or tee is not being used as a support for the ball, whereby the bowler can quickly and easily moisten his fingers.

With these and other objects in view, the invention consists in the novel construction, arrangement and formation' of parts, as will be hereinafter more specifically described and claimed, and illustrated in the accompanying drawing, in which drawing,

Figure l is a side elevational view showing my appliance in use for temporarily supporting a bowling ball;

Figure 2 is a central diametric section through the base or tee;

Figure 3 is a top plan view of the device, and

Figure 4 is a bottom plan view of the device with a pan broken away.

Referring to the drawing in detail, wherein similar reference characters designate corresponding parts throughout the several views, the letter A generally indicates the improved appliance and B a bowling ball which can be supported by the appliance A, against rolling movement.

Obviously, the bowling ball B forms no part of the present invention, and can be of any desired size and weight.

The improved appliance A consists of a base, support or tee and is preferably, but not necessarily formed from thermoplastic material and embodies a hollow body 5. This hollow body 5 includes a top wall 6 having formed on its peripheral edge a depending outwardly flared side wall 7. The hollow body is closed by a bottom wall 8 and if desired the inner surface of the side wall 7 can be provided with a seat 9, into which the bottom wall can be snapped. The bottom wall 7 can also be secured in place, if such should be preferred, by a suitable adhesive or sealing chemical. It is to be noted that the bottom wall 8 is spaced a slight distance from the extreme lower edge of the side wall 7, so as to form a pocket in the bottom of the appliance, for a purpose, which will later appear.

Housed within the hollow body 5 of the appliance A is a sponge 11 and the sponge can be a natural sponge, or cellulose, foam rubber etc. In order to permit access to be had to the sponge, the top wall 6 is provided with an enlarged central opening 12. This likewise permits the saturation of the sponge with water.

Formed on the upper surface of the top wall 6 is a rim or flange 13 of a general annular form and in actual practice this rim or flange 13 can be formed by upstanding arcuate ribs arranged in an arc of a circle. The rim or flange 13 extends a preferred distance above the top wall 6 so that the rim or flange will form an adequate seat for the reception of the bowling ball B. If desired, the top wall 6 around the central opening 12 can be provided with small openings 14. These openings provide means for the draining of water into the sponge during the filling thereof through the opening 12, and also permit the shaking out of any excess water from the sponge.

In use of the appliance A, the same can be normally carried in the transporting bag with the bowling ball, and when the player reaches the bowling alley and removes his ball from the bag, the appliance A can be placed on the floor or on a bench, and the ball can be immediately placed on the appliance, which acts as a base or support for the ball and to prevent accidental rolling movement thereof. The device also eflectively prevents the ball from becoming soiled from contact with the floor. The rim or flange 13 forms an effective seat, and considerable jar or thrust would be necessary to dislodge the ball from the appliance.

Obviously, with the sponge 11 saturated with water, a person can readily moisten his fingers from the sponge through the opening 12, and if the person then so desires, he can wipe his fingers clean on a towel which is usually provided for that purpose.

When the appliance is not being used for supporting a ball, the same can be attached to the clothing of a person, so that the sponge will at all times be accessible. To provide for this, a resilient clip 15 is secured to the lower surface of the bottom wall 8, and hence this clip can be sprung on a belt or shirtwaist, skirt or the like. The clip 15 is elfectively housed within the pocket 10, and hence does not protrude beyond the lower edge of the side wall 7. Hence, the clip does not interfere with the placing of the appliance on a floor or other support.

The appliance is of an extremely light weight and is of a small, compact nature, and hence is easy to store and transport and does not get in the way of, or annoy the bowler in any manner.

While we have stated that the hollow body 5 houses a sponge 11, it is to be understood that a cake of chalk can be fitted in the body in lieu of the sponge to permit the bowlers fingers to be wiped over the chalk and thus permit a grip to be had on the ball without slipping.

Changes in details may be made without departing from the spirit or the scope of this invention, but what is claimed as new is:

1. A freely portable appliance for use by bowlers during the game of bowling comprising a body including a top wall, an outwardly flared side wall and a bottom closure wall, said closure wall being secured to the inner face of the side wall inward of its lower edge defining in conjunction with the side and top walls an inner compartment and defining in conjunction with the side wall an exposed pocket on its lower face, a wiping element for the fingers of a bowler housed within the compartment, said top wall having an opening to expose the wiping opening to view and use, and a spring clip secured to the outer face of the bottom closure wall completely housed within the pocket for detachable engagement with the clothing of a bowler.

2'. A freely portable appliance for use by bowlers du'ring the game of bowling as defined in claim 1v and said top wall having formed on its outer face a substantially annular upstanding rimsurrounding the opening and defining a seat for a bowling ball, said rimbeing divided in arc'uate segments defining spaces to permit the overflow of water during the saturation of the wiping element in the compartment.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,151,404 Schlossberg Aug. 24, 1915 1,573,911 Budrow Feb. 23, 1926 1,741,783 Lower Dec. 31, 1929 1,818,617 G'rinwald Aug; 11, 1931 2,088,812 Reichenbaeh- Aug. 3, 1937 2,245,513 Weicker June 10, 1941 Daniels --.a 

